


Almost One in the Morning

by Txny_Stxrk



Series: Curious Case of Connor [3]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Curious Case Of Connor, Dad Hank, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Mentions of alcoholism, Teenage AU, Underage Drinking, angsty teen connor, teenage fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-09
Updated: 2018-09-09
Packaged: 2019-07-10 04:04:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15941417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Txny_Stxrk/pseuds/Txny_Stxrk
Summary: If Hank had thought raising three young boys had been hard, he quickly realised raising three teenagers was harder. He had experience with kids to a degree, Cole mostly, but teenagers? He’d never even had contact with them unless he was arresting them. Which he had hoped he wouldn’t have that problem with them.





	Almost One in the Morning

**Author's Note:**

> ta da! enjoy this teenage au fic because i’m trash <3
> 
> Edit: I cannot believe I forgot to add this to my series, I’m a dumbass.

If Hank had thought raising three young boys had been hard, he quickly realised raising three teenagers was harder. He had experience with kids to a degree, Cole mostly, but teenagers? He’d never even had contact with them unless he was arresting them. Which he had hoped he wouldn’t have that problem with them. 

 

The only experience he’d ever properly had was when he was a teenager himself, and he was… well, let’s say not the bed example. He may have straightened up his act fairly quickly, but before he realise what he properly wanted to do with his life he was an absolute monster.

 

However, the little bit of ‘advice’ that Ben had given him when Connor and Caleb had just turned ten years old still stuck in his head. A bit like a broken record.

 

_ “I’d be careful, Hank, your boys may be angels now but the second most common type of kids that rebel are children of cops.” He’d told him when he’d showed his colleague the picture of Connor and Caleb blowing out their candles on their cake. Hank had just huffed a laugh and smirked. _

 

_ His sons? Rebellious? None of them had a bad bone in their body. The worst thing Connor had done is run away with that Markus kid when he’d gotten too overwhelmed five years ago. He didn’t blame him for that, no his kids would be fine. They were smart enough not to do that. _

 

_ Still, he decided to entertain his best friend. _

 

_ “Yeah? And what’s the first common?” He asked humorously. Ben had gestured to the holding cell Hank could see from the breakroom, inside sat a fairly small teenage girl who was waiting for ‘daddy’ to come pay the bail and take her home after she’d been arrested due to being drunk and disorderly. _

 

_ “Children of priests.” _

 

_ Hank had barked out a laugh and nearly snorted his coffee out his nose. _

 

Hank had been laughing then, he wasn’t laughing now.

 

His coworker had definitely been onto something it seemed. It wasn’t just a weak cliche.

 

Because now here Hank was, sitting in the living room of their family home that they’d owned since just before the eldest two turned ten. He was sitting straight and in an armchair, their German Shepherd, Daisy, sitting at his feet obediently.

 

She was the first one up and suspicious when the front door creaked open. 

 

“Connor.” He said grumpily with a huff from where he was sat in the living room, watching the seventeen year old freeze in his tracks and turn to look at his father. He flashed him his best innocent look which, unlucky enough for his son, Hank had become practically immune to by now from the years of overuse – besides Connor wasn’t five anymore, he was older and his baby fat cheeks had turned into a sharp jawline as well as his big brown eyes fitting in with his face the more he grew. Yeah, no, Connor wasn’t getting out of this. He’d gotten too many warnings. Hank was putting his foot down.

 

“Oh… Hi, Dad.” He smiled awkwardly, Hank frowned.

 

“It’s almost one in the morning! I said back by half ten! You didn’t even call to tell me you’d be late!” He exclaimed in a hushed tone as to not wake up his other sons. That proved to be frugal when he noticed two shadows lurking beside the doorway to the hallway. “You two! It’s a school night! Get your asses to bed before you’re the ones getting the lecture!”

 

Both heads peeked into the room, brown and blue eyes alike looking between their father and brother. The three boys, though Caleb and Connor were still identical in practically every way, had grown a lot since Hank first met them - the twins were just a few inches smaller but the runt of the three, Conan, had surprised everyone when he hit his growth spurt and didn’t stop the growing. Now he was just taller than both his older brothers but still shorter than Hank. He hoped he’d stop growing soon, the idea of his youngest son being taller than him sounded like it was going to cause more smartass comments between the three of them. Conan, doing the smart thing, disappeared with a little snigger leaving Caleb to smirk at his twin – seeming to test his father’s patience by staying a little longer. “Told you he’d notice. Just because we’re identical twins doesn’t mean he doesn’t realise one of us is missing.”

 

Connor gave him a sharp glare, the innocent look fading in an instant. “If you threw me under the bus, Caleb, I swear-“

 

Caleb lifted his hands in mock surrender, clearly entertained by the situation if his smirk had anything to say about it. “I’m your brother, I wouldn’t dare. Besides, you've got too much shit on me to risk it.” He put his hand over his heart. “Scouts honour.” Connor reached over to pick up the closest pillow that was lying on the sofa to his side and pelted it at his twin, succeeding in his mission when it hit him square in the face.

 

“You’ve never been a scout in your life!”

 

“Boys!” Hank interrupted their brotherly spat, massaging the bridge of his nose, something he found himself doing so often he reminded himself of his own father. These kids were the reason his hair was turning grey, he swore they’d put him in an early grave. “Caleb, bed. Connor,-“ He raised his head and gave his son a look that meant he was serious, Connor responded by looking anywhere but his dad and scratching the back of his neck, “- sit.” He pointed to the sofa in front of him.

 

Caleb stayed for a touch longer, almost as if he was considering trying to stay to watch his brother get into trouble no matter the consequences, until he sensibly concluded that it wasn’t worth Hank’s wrath and fled for the safety of his room. Connor, on the other hand, swallowed heavily and sat on the sofa across from his dad’s armchair.

 

There was a long tense pause. 

 

Hank sighed, rubbing his hand down his face before finally speaking. “Where were you, Connor?” He already knew. This wasn’t the first time this happened and the answer was always the same. Still, he needed to hear it from Connor. Hear any excuse he had.

 

Connor looked away, almost as if he was working out the probability of Hank discovering whether or not he was lying. It was 100%, it always was, his kid was a shit liar. Caleb, on the other hand, was so good at lying that Hank felt concerned. Conan was either the best at lying or never lied and honestly Hank couldn’t tell which.

 

The older they got, the more the boys differed. The more the twins specifically differed.

 

When Connor opened his mouth, Hank was brought back to the present. “I was… with Markus.” He smiled nervously at the admission and Hank huffed again.

 

“Y’know I don’t like you hanging out with him so much, Connor. Especially when you come back at odd hours of the night! He’s twenty! You’re still in high school! Why can’t you make friends with people your own age!”

 

Hank had hoped the infatuation Connor had seemingly had with Markus from the moment he’d met him would fade with age but god was he wrong, it only seemed to get stronger. It went from a simple kid thing - innocent hugs and cheek kisses - to a full fledged crush by middle school, to whatever they were now. He didn’t get told anything anymore, for all he knew they could be dating. Or worse, not dating but still being… involved. He didn’t like Markus, he’d always felt sour for him but hadn’t seen too much harm letting Connor see his best friend, the kid was the perfect bad boy and just attracted trouble. And apparently his son.

 

Besides, he drove around on a motorcycle. That thing was a death trap with his baby boy on the back. Hank didn’t like the idea of Connor on something so dangerous with someone he really didn’t trust.

 

Connor huffed at that, sounding far too much like Hank when he did so. “So what! It’s only three years! When I’m twenty, he’ll be twenty three, and that’s not a big deal!” But he wasn’t twenty. He wasn’t even eighteen. He was practically a child, definitely a minor, and Hank’s responsibility. He’d never forgive himself if he let Connor do anything that either of them would regret later.

 

Hank stood, blood boiling a bit as he tried to get his point across. “As long as you’re under my roof, you’re under my rules, young man!” Wow, now he really sounded like his father.

 

Connor stood right back, not shrinking down from his father’s anger as his own blossomed in his chest. “Maybe I don’t want to be under your rules! Hell, maybe I don’t even want to be under your roof! You aren’t my real dad anyway! I bet Elijah wouldn’t treat me like this!”

 

He ignored how the words made his chest sting and continued to stand strong. Connor was close enough now that Hank could smell his breath. His face fell further at the realisation and his voice was no louder than a furious whisper. “You’ve been drinking.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement. His eyes spoke volumes of disappointment and underlying layer of anger. Not at Connor, at his ‘friend’ that clearly encouraged it.

 

The room was so silent you could hear a pin drop. Connor shifted where he stood, all macho and anger from a second ago fading away as his body language clearly gave away his sudden uneasiness.

 

“What about it?” He replied in his best attempt to sound brave but just coming off as sheepish, eyes glued to his feet as he folded his arms. His fingers fidgeted.

 

“You know how I feel about that shit.” It had been years since Hank had even looked at a bottle - at least without wanting to tear the lid off of it and down it. It had been hard, he’d eventually made the sacrifice for his boys when Connor had been seven and he realised how much of a problem he really had and couldn’t keep going on with it. The memory of the three of them walking home to school for the 5th time in the last fortnight because he’d either been too busy to pick them up or, like then, he’d been drunk made him realise, having them walk into the kitchen with him passed out on the floor because it was his day off and the boys weren’t there to distract him made him realise, the fuzzy memory of urgent shoves and tearful cries as they feared for the worst, trying to wake him. It made him realise that drink was a monster that takes and takes and he couldn’t let it take his family from him - it was all he had left.

 

He wasn’t going to force any of his sons to never drink just because he couldn’t stare at a bottle without getting nightmarish memories, they might not be as weak as himself, but like hell was he going to let them get drunk underage. Especially not 4 years underage without his supervision.

 

Hank stared at his son for longer, the disappointment and disbelief evident on his face, before finally scoffing with a shake of his head and stepping back from him, storming past him with the intention of going to bed and thinking over all the things he might’ve done wrong for this to happen. He hesitated in the doorway but didn’t turn around. “You could’ve at least texted. Do you have any idea how worried I was? I thought-“ he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He thought of Cole briefly. “Just go to bed, Connor.”

 

Of all people, he’d never thought any of his boys would be so stupid. They’d seen the effect of alcohol firsthand, they’d seen how it had destroyed him.

 

The hand on the wrist was a surprise. Hank turned only for his son to practically throw his arms around him and bury his face into his neck. The dampness on his skin answered the unasked question of whether or not he was crying. He stood in shock.

 

He wondered, for a moment, if they were crocodile tears and he didn’t return the hug.

 

Connor was quick to start babbling, seemingly terrified he’d totally fucked his realtionship up with Hank. “I’m sorry! I-I’m sorry I know I shouldn’t have!” He cried into him and Hank slowly let his arms naturally wrap around his son, not being able to hold back. “I… It wasn’t Markus’s idea! Dad I swear! Please don’t blame him… we just went to this party and t-there was alcohol! He told me not to but they were calling me a kid and I’m not! Then Markus got mad at me and I- I-“ He cut himself off and Hank swallowed heavily, rubbing circles on Connor’s back like he did whenever the kid had breakdowns when he was younger. He even made some comforting sounds.

 

“Hey… Hey, it’s okay… it’s getting late, how about we talk about this tomorrow? When you’re less drunk maybe?” Hank knew, as honest as Connor might be at the moment, it would be taking advantage of his son if he let him just say everything. He wasn’t going to make him tell him all his secrets, he respected the kid too much for that.

 

The conversation could wait, Hank knew he’d tell him what he needed to know.

 

Connor pulled away and sniffled softly but nodded, rubbing his red and puffy eyes with his sleeve. God, those big brown puppy dog eyes were back and reminded him so much of the terrified five-year-old that was found at the crime scene. It sent a sad pang through his heart when he realised, not for the first time, just how quickly he’d grown. How quickly he was still growing. It was unreal. He wished he could keep him as a happy child forever but he’d already lost that. He’d lost that even before this first experience of dealing with Connor drunk.

 

He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his forehead, another gesture he did a lot when he was young. He hoped he never grew taller than this, hoped he’d stay at the perfect height to kiss his head. “Come on then.” 

 

He lead the kid up the stairs. At least it was clear he hadn’t had much more than maybe one or two drinks, he seemed mostly fine physically… just a touch more emotional.

 

Hopefully, this would be a learning experience for the both of them. Hank had been so quick to assume Markus had either pressured Connor to drink, or that his son had done it so willingly without guilt. He should’ve let him explain, maybe he should be less strict on the kid. There was so much ways they could’ve handled the whole situation differently.

 

He’d have to have a proper talk to Markus one of these days. After all, if he was going to date and take care of his son, Hank would need to make sure he knew what would happen if he fucked up. He was a Lieutenant at the DPD, he specialised in homicides, he knew how to dispose of a body and have no one find it if he really wanted to after all.

 

He sat Connor down on his bed and went to leave, but was stopped by his son calling back to him softly. He looked back to see Connor looking to him with those same big brown eyes, sleep tinting them as he laid back still in his clothes. “Goodnight, Dad… I love you.” 

 

Hank couldn’t help but smile softly. Those words were growing harder and harder to come by the older that Connor became. His chest tightened at the idea that one day he might not hear them at all anymore. One day, he might barely hear from any of his sons...

 

“I love you too, son.”

**Author's Note:**

> comment more one shot ideas <3  
> i’ll probably do more teenage fics in the future


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